The Madhya Pradesh Police have registered a criminal case against a government paediatrician and the directors of a Tamil Nadu-based pharmaceutical company. This comes after at least 11 children in Chhindwara district’s Parasia reportedly died after consuming contaminated cough syrup.
Dr Praveen Soni, a paediatrician at Parasia’s Community Health Centre (CHC), defended himself ahead of his arrest. He said he could not have imagined the syrup was dangerous and has been prescribing it for 15 years. He added that he was not the only doctor prescribing this medicine.
Dr Soni claimed that multiple factors, including viral infections and high fevers, could have caused kidney damage. “It was a mixed pattern; there were multiple causes, which I thought went from viral infections to high-grade fevers, which caused kidney damage. One could not imagine that the drugs would be toxic. Why would anyone prescribe it (if it is known it was toxic)?, Soni said.
Adding to it he mentioned that, “It is difficult to say how many syrups I have prescribed to patients, but I have been prescribing this cough syrup for the past 15 years.”
FIR names doctor and company officials
The FIR, filed at Parasia police station on Saturday, names Dr Soni and the directors of M/s Sresan Pharmaceuticals, Kanchipuram, Tamil Nadu. They are booked under sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 276 (adulteration of drugs) of the Indian Penal Code, as well as section 27(A) of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.
The complaint was filed by Dr Ankit Sahlam, Block Medical Officer of Parasia CHC. He said several children under five, treated for fever and cough by Dr Soni, developed acute kidney failure after taking the syrup.
“After taking the prescribed medicine, many children developed urine retention, and medical tests showed elevated levels of serum creatinine and urea, indicating renal failure,” the complaint said.
It was alleged that Soni “knowingly produced and administered a dangerous adulterated drug to small children, which was capable of causing death”.
Children developed kidney failure
The FIR states that children showed symptoms such as urine retention, and tests revealed elevated serum creatinine and urea levels, indicating kidney damage. Many children were referred to hospitals in Nagpur for emergency treatment.
The Madhya Pradesh government ordered an immediate ban on Coldrif Syrup, manufactured by Sresan Pharmaceuticals, after tests in Chennai revealed the syrup contained Diethylene Glycol (48.6% w/v), a poisonous substance harmful to health.
Government suspends doctor
Following the FIR, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav ordered the suspension of Dr Soni. Tarun Rathi, Commissioner of Public Health and Medical Education, cited “serious negligence in treating infants during private practice and failure to discharge official duties with integrity.”
A government spokesperson said Dr Soni had prescribed medicines to infants during private practice that caused high fever and kidney problems.
SIT to probe cough syrup case
Superintendent of Police Ajay Pandey said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been formed to trace the toxic syrup’s supply chain and hold the manufacturers accountable, according to a report by The Indian Express.
“A police team has been dispatched to Tamil Nadu to investigate the company officials. We are checking their current licences, distribution network, and the involvement of the directors,” IE reported quoting Pandey.